Halloween Chambersburg style
by Proudofyoubabe
Summary: Just a short one-shot for Stephanie's favorite holiday. An eventual Ranger epiphany and HEA.


**Halloween Chambersburg style**

Just a short one-shot in honor of Steph's favorite holiday and an eventual Ranger epiphany HEA. If you recognize them, they belong to Janet…but all mistakes are mine :)

 _Mary Lou Stankovik_

Sometimes it's really hard to tell a good idea from a bad one. You know, sometimes you think you might just be doing something to make your life go smoother? But, since Steph has been my best friend since kindergarten, I guessed it was ok to call in a chip once in a while. At least I hoped so.

"Hi," I said into the phone when she picked up hers. We didn't need to introduce ourselves, our voices were ingrained in each other's brains...permanently.

"What's up? It's Halloween. Shouldn't you be getting the boys ready?"

I sighed before answering. "That's part of the problem. Kenny and Mikey are home sick. They both have ear infections...again. And Lenny took Lenny to New York to some cemetery so they could visit the Headless Horseman's grave...or something like that. It's what little Lenny wanted to do. Listen, I could really use your help."

"Anything, Mare. You know that. What can I do?"

"Well you know how busy it gets here with treat-or-treaters? I'm like on the intersection of two main streets. Well, they've cleaned me out…"

"So you want me to go to the store and get some more candy for you? Not a problem..."

"Uh, no. I've already used up my entire Halloween allowance for costumes and candy. Listen, can you come over and stay with the boys while I put on Kenny's Darth Vader costume and go out to get reinforcements?"

" _You're_ going trick-or-treating?" she asked incredulously.

"Well, Kenny and I are about the same height and weight. I'll put on the mask...no one will know."

 _Stephanie_

I couldn't believe what I was hearing. Well, yes I could; Mare and I weren't exactly known for playing by the rules. And at 5'3", 120-ish pounds, Lou could probably pass for a slightly chubby eight-year old.

"Sure, Mare. I'll be over in like ten."

"Hurry. My doorbell is ringing again. I've got Lenny's penny jar out but it looks like he's only got a few bucks in here. I'm going to need those reinforcements fast."

I hung up and grabbed my bag; this was an emergency after all.

I got as far as my car when my phone started ringing again. I looked at the caller ID...it was Ranger.

"Yo," I answered with _his_ typical greeting. 'Hello' had too many syllables.

"Babe. I need your help."

Guess I was popular today.

"I'm on my way to Mary Lou's. It's kind of an emergency..."

"Did one of her boys get hurt?"

"No, nothing like that. It's a Halloween thing. Don't ask."

"Will you be back soon? I have a reliable lead on a high bond and I could use your help getting him outside."

"Now?"

"No. Tonight around 9."

"Usual slutty look? I'll need some time to pull that off and I'll probably be here for a few hours."

"I'll find some things in your closet and bring them to you. Does Mary Lou have makeup or do you need me to grab that, too?"

"She's got makeup but can you bring me my small circular brush and some hairspray?"

"I should be at the Stankovic's in about thirty minutes," he told me. I was about to give him the address but he was gone. And God only knew what kind of outfit he was going to pull together for me.

Twenty-eight and a half minutes later Mare's doorbell rang. For a second I thought it was trick-or-treaters, which I've managed to avoid for the last half hour by turning off all the lights. I peeped through the door to be certain before letting him in.

Of course he stated the obvious as he handed me a shopping bag. "It's dark in here, why don't you turn on some lights?"

"No-ooo," I practically yelled. "They'll know we're here."

" _They_?"

He looked at me curiously, probably wondering if I were hiding from zombies, so I explained the situation. That got the full-hundred watt-er out of him...and a belly laugh.

"I can watch the door while you get ready," he said, turning on a few lights."

"They'll see us!"

"So? They'll catch a glimpse of me and they'll run the other way."

I knew that to be true. He could make skips pee themselves with just one look.

"Go easy on them, Ranger, they're just kids. And you need to know that Mare is dressed as Darth Vader, so let _her_ in. And she should be carrying a large plastic pumpkin overflowing with candy."

"I'll be on the lookout. Did you like the clothes I picked out?"

To be honest, I hadn't looked.

"I'm sure whatever you brought will be fine," I said before retreating to Lou's bathroom to do my hair and makeup.

When I came out Ranger and Mary Lou were sitting at her dining room table resorting the candy she'd collected. If I had my phone in my hand, I probably would have taken a picture. I'd never seen Ranger looking so domestic.

"Mom-my! Mom-my!" we heard coming from upstairs. It sounded like Mikey. "Mom-my, my ears hurt. I need more Tylenol."

"They probably both could use another dosage. And who knew this stuff knocked them out? I'll be right back," she told us. "Coming, Mikey," she yelled up to her youngest while retreating to the kitchen for drugs and tumblers of water.

"Looking good, Babe," Ranger said when Mare was out of earshot. And as if to prove his point, he pulled me close and gave me a bone-melting kiss. My lipstick was toast, but God, who cares, that man could really kiss.

"Mary Lou invited us to stay for dinner," Ranger told me when we broke apart.

"And what did you say?"

"I told her I'd ask you. I also told her we were working later. _You know_ …you can come back to Rangeman with me, have dinner, and finish getting ready there? I'm sure Ella's making enough for two."

Dinner with sick, grumpy kids and constant trick-or-treat interruptions or dinner at Ranger's with calmness and Ella's gourmet cooking? Not really a dilemma at all.

"Ok. I'll come to Rangeman. Let me ask Mare if she needs to go out for another trick-or-treat run, or if she's good with the candy she's got? I may have to stay if she needs to make another trip."

"Tell you what? I'll go to the store down the street and buy a few bags of candy. My treat to get you out of this insanity."

"Mare won't be happy. She doesn't accept charity."

"It's not charity...it's peace of mind. Well, for my mind."

"You better have your story all figured out 'cause that's not going to go down without a fight."

"I have a story she won't contest. Be back in five, Babe." And then he was gone.

"So are you guys staying for dinner?" Mare asked when she came down with an empty tray.

"We have a job tonight so I'll take a rain check. It'd be easier to get ready at Batman's."

"And speaking of Batman, where did he go?"

"He went out to get you some more candy."

"Don't tell me he's going to trick-or-treat around my neighborhood? Someone will call the cops."

"No. He had a simpler approach. He should be back in a few and then we'll head out."

Ranger arrived back about ten minutes later with a large bag of 'fun' size Milkyway bars, a large bag of bite size Reese's peanut butter cups and an enormous bag of miniature Three Musketeer bars. I couldn't believe that he, of all people, picked out the nation's candy favorites.

"This should cover you," he told Mary Lou and then whispered something in her ear. Her face turned beet red and a huge smile appeared.

"Ah," she said. "I, uh, I can't compete with that. Have a good time...but come back soon."

"We will. And happy Halloween."

I kissed her goodbye and whispered, "What did he tell you?"

She just shook her head. "Another time."

"We only need to take one car, Babe. My men can pick up yours and bring it to Rangeman for you," he said as we walked down Mare's walkway towards our cars.

"Uh, ok," I said as he fobbed open the car and held the passenger door for me.

Once I was buckled up I turned to him to ask, "So just what did you tell Mary Lou that got her all tongue-tied and embarrassed?"

"I only said that I was going to have you screaming my name before the night was up."

"Ranger!" I yelled. "You can't say things like that to my best friend. What will she think?"

"I don't know, but you just screamed my name so I was truthful," he wolf-grinned at me.

Needless to say, I smacked him in the arm.

 _Ranger_

Part of what makes me so successful is that I'm good at catching people unaware. I knew that Mary Lou would embarrass easily at any reference to sex. And truthfully, I was hoping to convince Steph to stay with me after our job tonight. I'd heard through the grapevine that Morelli had broken up with her a few weeks ago and that she was in shock over it. She didn't look like she was in shock to me. And as I've told her numerous times, their relationship, the way it currently stood, was unhealthy. Perhaps she'd be more open to my advances with him out of the picture? Truth was, I did love her and I wished I could offer her something more permanent than a night here or there but until my government contract was over, that was all I had. I didn't want her grieving over me if one day I didn't come back from _wherever_.

This was supposed to be an easy capture. We had reliable info that Arthur Gooding spent every Monday getting wasted at the X bar in Rockaway. It wasn't that far from Trenton to not take a chance, so I shared his picture and info with Steph as we drove towards Rangeman.

"He looks like an upstanding citizen," Steph mentioned offhandedly as she thumbed through the file. "Businessman?"

"Bad business. But yeah, I guess you could call him a businessman. He 'borrowed' 40 million from his company's matching benefits fund and 'forgot' to pay it back. He's out on a million bail. Judge gave him a slap on the wrist and hasn't seen him since. Our take for this job is one hundred thousand, will twenty be ok with you?"

"Twenty dollars?"

"Twenty thousand, Babe. You know I'd never shortchange you. You do the job, you get paid."

"Some sweet talking over a drink is hardly worth twenty thousand, Ranger."

"It is to me. Can you see me or any of my men doing that? We'd only get him out by brute force and then we'd have to pay for damages. And besides, I get to see you dressed up in that little dress I found in your closet."

"Um. I didn't go through the bag. What little dress?"

"It's grey with some kind of black sheer material for the sleeves and back."

"That's not a dress, Ranger. That's a tunic. It's meant to be worn over a cami and leggings."

"Guess I left that part of the outfit in your apartment, but I brought you those 4" heels I've seen you wear to viewings. I thought you'd look like a woman out for the evening."

"Hmmph. If it doesn't look good, you're taking me back and I'll do the picking."

"Babe."

 _Stephanie_

Figures he'd pick something that would have most of my legs and chest exposed. I had a feeling this outfit would be over the top. Thankfully Ella and her sewing machine were just one floor away and she was a miracle worker.

I pulled the bag from the back seat and looked at the outfit closely as we pulled into the Rangeman garage. I could see why Ranger picked it. Pared with the black FMPs it could pass for a short, low-cut cocktail dress. I _could_ be going out after work wearing something like that. _But_ I'd wait to try it on before I let him off the hook.

We parked and took the elevator to seven. Ranger was on his phone during the short ride up. I assumed by the three words he said that he was talking to Ella to let her know that I was with him and that we'd be at Rangeman till around 8.

"Morelli?" he asked as he put the phone back in his pocket and fobbed his apartment door open. That was Rangerspeak for, "Can I kiss you?"

"I thought you knew, everyone else does, we broke up for good a few weeks ago."

He smirked at me but as he closed the door he pulled me into his arms. That was no surprise, but what did surprise me was what he said when we both came up for air.

"I've missed this, Babe."

I had too, but it was better to say nothing where Ranger was concerned. You know, the information to the enemy thing.

"Ella's bringing up dinner," he added, obviously changing the subject after my non-response.

"Thanks, Ranger. I heard you say that we need to leave by eight, so I should get ready in case this outfit doesn't work and we need to make another trip back to my apartment."

"My bedroom's all yours. I'll be in my office if you need me."

Somehow I got the feeling that was another one of his double entendres, but I ignored it and took the Macy's bag into his bedroom. He had a huge _flawless_ mirror in his closet that would tell the truth about this outfit and I was going to look at it from every angle before making a decision.

I put on the tunic and the shoes and walked into his closet for the moment of reckoning.

I turned around slowly. Very slowly. My mouth dropped open when I saw the reflection looking back at me. It. Was. Perfect. Holy shit, Batman. How did you do that?

I walked out of his bedroom with the outfit still on and literally bumped into him in the hallway.

"Sorry, Ranger. I was just coming to show you. Um, you did good," I added, twirling around for him to see the 'tunic'—now dress—from all sides.

"You look beautiful, Babe," he told me, his eyes dilating black to prove his point. "So you're keeping it? We don't have to go back to your apartment?"

"Where did you learn how to dress women?"

"God given talent. Mostly I like to undress them."

It was the 'them' word that gave me pause. Of course I assumed there were other women in his life, he just never mentioned them before.

"Babe?"

I knew I didn't say that out loud.

"Ranger?" I answered his question with one of my own.

"You're upset. What did I say?"

"It's fine. Do we need to leave?"

"Babe, you're not fine. We can't go out and do a job that requires the two of us to be trusting and communicate with each other if you've shut down and are angry with me."

"I'm sorry. I never know when you're telling me the truth or just giving me shit."

"I'm always truthful. What did I say?"

He wasn't going to let it go, was he? "This is going to sound stupid," I began. "But I got jealous. I'm ok now."

"Jealous of what? And you're not ok."

I was going to have to come clean, wasn't I?

"Ok. It was the other women?"

"Other women? I told you truthfully, you are the only woman besides Ella to ever set foot in this apartment."

"The other women you undress. Jeez. I told you it was going to sound stupid."

"Babe, come here," he said, leading me into the living room and sitting me down on the couch. He sat down next to me and took my hands in his.

"I don't know where you've gotten this idea about multiple women in my life. I sspend most of my time building my business. I have no time to seek out women. You and Ella are the closest ones to me right now—and you spend most of the time pushing me away.

I didn't, did I?

"I've been trying to break through this shell you seem to be wearing when it comes to me for years," he continued. "I can count on one hand the number of times you've let me in and I've never kept my intentions hidden."

"No you haven't. 'My love comes with a condom, not a ring.' 'I'm not relationship material.' And _I_ 'might get my heart broken'. I get it-that's why I back off. I could fall for you hard." What I didn't tell him was that I already have.

"Do you _honestly_ know what all of that means?" He didn't wait for a response before continuing. "You know I _go into the wind_ occasionally. What I'm doing is riding out my commitment with the U.S. Government. If I were to promise myself to you the way I would like to and something happened where I didn't make it back, you'd be shattered. I couldn't have that on my conscience."

"I would think that would be for me to decide. And I'd be shattered anyway. You won a place in my heart a long time ago."

"We have to leave. Come back here after we nab Gooding and we can talk about this further over the dinner that Ella's left for us."

It wasn't a question.

"Let's get this job done first and then see what happens."

 _Ranger_

That wasn't a 'no' but she was pulling away again. I helped her into her coat and we headed down to the garage where I chose the 911 for the night. She once let it slip that she loved that car so I was going to use whatever ammo was at my disposal.

I buckled her in and gave her a quick but meaningful kiss on the lips. I knew she was thinking through all I'd told her tonight and I was going to give her space. I just didn't want her distracted from the job at hand although I knew she'd be fine. She had a way of putting aside the things that bothered her and letting out her warm, inviting personality. Another trait that drew me to her.

We drove the hour to Rockaway in a comfortable silence. Me in my zone and Steph deep in thought. I knew I could snap her out of it later, so I let it go on. Not that I'm one to initiate conversation anyway.

When we got a few blocks from the X bar I pulled over to a secluded spot on a side street. It was time to wire her for sound and make sure my men we already in position.

I took my bug case out of the glove compartment. It contained everything I needed: tiny mics, tape and assorted other minuscule listening devices.

"Ranger, do we have to? I'm so much better at this stuff when I don't have an audience."

"It's not your acting I worry about. If I get a hint of aggressive behavior from Gooding, we need to be able to move in closer to protect you and I don't want to rely solely on body language."

"Ok. Suit me up," she sighed, unbuttoning her coat for me.

The dress was quite low-cut so I wanted to tape the mic underneath her bra to be less detectable. Unfortunately, that meant handling her breast. It was not unfortunate for me but I could tell she was uncomfortable as I adhered the last strip of tape directly to her bare skin.

"Are we done yet?" she asked, gauging that I was taking my time. Well, I guess I was. I was thoroughly enjoying myself.

"Yeah, Babe, we're done," I told her, adjusting the top of her dress. "Buckle up. I'll drive you closer."

 _Stephanie_

I can never think straight when Ranger has his hands on me. Not that his hands on me are a bad thing, but it just effects my thinking. Like, God I wanted to jump him right now...in this car...again. But that was just my hormones talking and nothing good has ever come from listening to them. I needed to calm down; I needed to be professional. And we needed to get Gooding back into custody. He wasn't a nice guy; he stole from his own employees.

I buckled myself back into the Porsche and we headed over to the X bar. We'd already gotten confirmation from Hal that Gooding was on premises and drinking heavily. I reviewed his file once more before leaving it, my coat and my handbag on the seat of Ranger's car. I had my phone and fake fob panic button in hand and Gooding's face memorized. It was show time.

I walked right up to the bar and huffed as I sat down next to Gooding. Bobby was behind the counter so I made eye contact.

"Vodka rocks, please. And make that a double."

"Better take it easy, young lady. The night is still young," Gooding said, looking up from his drink momentarily to catch my eye."

"I'm not a young lady and I don't care what time it is," I responded with a lot of attitude.

"Grumpy, aren't you?" he mumbled before taking another sip.

"I heard that. And if you were me, you'd be grumpy too. I was on my way into the city when I hit a pothole. I now have a flat tire and my waiting time for AAA is three hours."

"So you're going to drink until they get here?"

"Yep. Unless you can think of something better."

He turned and looked at me. His glazed eyes did a thorough scan of my body. Taking in my low-cut top, the short skirt and the high heels.

"I could think of a better way to spend a few hours. Why don't you come with me to my apartment and we can get to know each other better."

"I don't go anywhere with people I've just met and I don't even know your name," I told him taking a sip of the 'drink' Bobby put in front of me.

"I'm Arthur," he said, handing me his business card.

"CEO?" I read outloud. "You must be a big shot?"

"I've been told it's more than a mouthful."

Ewww. He was talking about the quantity of semen he produced. As if that would turn me on? I'd have to get him out of here soon...before my stomach revolted on me.

"Yeah? Care to put your money where your mouth is?" I continued in spite of the way I felt.

"I'd like to put something in yours so you can see for yourself."

Oh God. Gross.

"Well Mr. Big Shot," I responded teasingly, "I've heard that bigger is better. Are we talking about something like that?"

"My Lexus is right outside..."

"You have a Lexus?"

"A GS-F. V-8, 386 horsepower."

"That's all? I bet _you_ have more horsepower than that?"

"Only one way to find out," he said, throwing money on the bar and leading me out by my elbow.

I'd have to get his hands off of me before we exited. I didn't want to accidentally get hurt when the guys took him down.

"Wait. I forgot my phone," I said, turning back to get the phone and fob I'd purposely left on the bar.

I picked them up, grinned at Bobby and followed Gooding towards the door. As we got closer I walked even slower. And as soon as he touched the exit bar on the door I saw Hal and Manny come between me and him. I also knew a few of the guys would be on the outside. No place to run Gooding.

The takedown went smoothly and they had him shackled into a waiting SUVs in under two minutes. None of the other patrons were the wiser.

"Good job, Babe," Ranger said coming up behind me and whispering in my ear.

"Thank you."

"I couldn't help but hear some of the pickup lines he threw at you. I thought you were ready to knee him at one point."

"I was thinking about it. I'll just have to wash my ears out with bleach."

"How about some soothing music on our way back to Trenton instead?"

"Not too soothing or I might fall asleep. And I'm really going to need something to eat."

"Ella's dinner is in my warming drawer. It smelled like a chicken stew. And I can probably convince her to bring up a good-sized piece of her Halloween chocolate cake, too."

I'd heard about this chocolate cake. She made it every Halloween and the guys purposely trick- or-treated her apartment for a slice. It had orange icing with spider webs and 3-D spiders sitting on top of it.

"Deal."

"Shall we get the mic off of you before we head back?" he asked, thankfully remembering before I said something I might not want repeated.

I nodded in agreement and we headed over to a darkened area of the parking lot. I reached into my dress and removed the tape and the small microphone and handed it back to Ranger who looked like he was pouting.

"You took my fun away," he said.

"I think you had enough fun earlier. Um, is that thing off?"

"It's off, Babe. You did a good job with that sleezebag. I'm really proud of you," he added pulling me close and kissing the top of my head.

"Thanks Ranger, it means a lot coming from you."

"I was never worried; you always get your man."

At that point my stomach let itself be known.

He laughed, "Let's go feed that beast. The guys can take it from here. They have all the paperwork."

 _Ranger_

I noticed Steph was quiet on the drive back to Trenton. I knew it had to do with what I told her earlier, especially since I'd promised we'd resume our conversation after dinner. It pained me to see her so introspective. I could probably reverse a little of what I told her since there was only 2 months left on my government contract and I wasn't planning on re-upping.

I put my hand on her leg to initiate conversation. "Babe?"

"Hmmm, Ranger?"

"Listen, I want to talk to you about something I've been toying with for the last month or so..."

"You need my help making a decision?" she interrupted, like that could never happen.

"No Babe, I've already made it. You helped me cast the final vote this evening."

"I did?"

"My government contract is up at the end of the year. I've decided not to extend it."

"And why is that? I thought you loved being in the wind."

"I'm very good at what I do and the pay is extremely lucrative but I don't love the thought of going away one day and never coming back. You made me realize that earlier. I guess I've never had something I've really cared about...to come back to...before..."

"Rangeman?"

"I do care about my business but I was talking about you. I saw the look on your face when I explained my 'no relationships' stance earlier. And I'd like to talk about that some more."

"Oh God Ranger, do we have to? I'm not sure I can handle any more bad news right now."

"I'm re-negging. I think I've hurt you enough."

"I don't understand."

"You made me realize today that I can't live without you in my life. You're the ray of sunshine against all my black..."

"Well you could wear another color once in a while," she beamed at me, obviously picking up on where I was heading.

"I'd like to give 'us' a try if you're willing."

She got quiet again.

"And what does that mean?" she finally asked.

"Instead of me heading to a sandy area of the government's choice I thought for starters we could go to a sandy area of yours. I understand Belize is beautiful this time of year."

"You want to take a vacation with me?"

"We can go online after dinner and make some decisions. I can make myself available any time after next week, so start thinking about a timeframe, too."

That seemed to relax her frown and she was smiling broadly as we approached Trenton. Maybe this was something I should have given thought to earlier? Like maybe like three years earlier.

Happy Halloween!


End file.
